I never disagreed that Milwaukee was free-falling. Where I disagreed was that I didn't expect them to continue free-falling because they had/have the talent to be a .500 team. I predicted they would right the ship, play .500 ball the rest of the season. and save themselves from completely "falling of". Maybe it was Rico and not you, but there was definitely insistence that Milwaukee had already completely fallen off. 

 

I never said they were the team that started the season, so the "still aren't by the way" comment is pretty worthless. I said that Milwaukee played out of their minds the first half of the season and that gave them a figurative "head start". I've always thought of Milwaukee as a ~.500 club and that's all the was needed to stay in the playoff hunt. Still are, by the way.

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Um, what? Falling out of contention = falling out of the playoff race. I don't think Milwaukee will fall out of the playoff discussion. As long as they play .500 ball the rest of the season (which I think they are capable of) they will be in the discussion. I'm not sure what you're trying to get me to say here?

 

Do I, or have I ever thought Milwaukee was one of the best teams in the NL? No.

Do I, or have I ever thought Milwaukee was one of the worst teams in the NL? No.

 

I think Milwaukee is a middle of the pack team that played above their level for the 1st half of the season. Now, if they play .500 (middle of the pack) baseball, they will stay in contention and not completely fall off like I originally stated.

 

 

If you think I'm wrong about Milwaukee finishing with ~85 ish wins, that's fine. They very well might continue their free fall and struggle the rest of the season. I have no problem with that opinion. However, my opinion and comments on Milwaukee have all been consistent.

 

 

See?

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Jorge Soler to debut for the Cubbies tonight, yet another piece to the future puzzle getting some time in before 2015.

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I never disagreed that Milwaukee was free-falling. Where I disagreed was that I didn't expect them to continue free-falling because they had/have the talent to be a .500 team. I predicted they would right the ship, play .500 ball the rest of the season. and save themselves from completely "falling of". Maybe it was Rico and not you, but there was definitely insistence that Milwaukee had already completely fallen off. 

 

I never said they were the team that started the season, so the "still aren't by the way" comment is pretty worthless. I said that Milwaukee played out of their minds the first half of the season and that gave them a figurative "head start". I've always thought of Milwaukee as a ~.500 club and that's all the was needed to stay in the playoff hunt. Still are, by the way.

And the part about continuing the free fall was never the argument. That was pulled out of thin air by you.

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TravC59, aka JacksJags. @TravC59 on Twitter
;
; "This is really good, you want a bite, Honey?"

And the part about continuing the free fall was never the argument. That was pulled out of thin air by you.

 

At the time, the Brewers hadn't "fallen off" yet. They were still in 1st place in the division. I said "I don't expect the Brewers to fall off", as in out of contention, and they haven't. Rico said "they already have (fallen off)". If Milwaukee didn't right their ship and continued their free-fall, they would have "fallen off". That's not what happened, though.

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At the time, the Brewers hadn't "fallen off" yet. They were still in 1st place in the division. I said "I don't expect the Brewers to fall off", as in out of contention, and they haven't. Rico said "they already have (fallen off)". If Milwaukee didn't right their ship and continued their free-fall, they would have "fallen off". That's not what happened, though.

They certainly did fall off are you kidding me? The HUGE lead they had evaporated. Players who were hot as fire cooled significantly. They most certainly fell off for a good bit there before the break.

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TravC59, aka JacksJags. @TravC59 on Twitter
;
; "This is really good, you want a bite, Honey?"

They certainly did fall off are you kidding me? The HUGE lead they had evaporated. Players who were hot as fire cooled significantly. They most certainly fell off for a good bit there before the break.

 

They were falling off, but righted the ship. If they had completely fallen off, they would not be in 1st place in the division and several games ahead of the wild card race.

 

Like I've stated umpteen times.... No one expected them to continue the scorching hot start they got off to. Reverting back to the mean doesn't mean the team "fell off". I feel like this must be your first year following baseball. Teams go through cold stretches all the time and those cold stretches do not mean the team has fallen out of contention.

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They were falling off, but righted the ship. If they had completely fallen off, they would not be in 1st place in the division and several games ahead of the wild card race.

 

Like I've stated umpteen times.... No one expected them to continue the scorching hot start they got off to. Reverting back to the mean doesn't mean the team "fell off". I feel like this must be your first year following baseball. Teams go through cold stretches all the time and those cold stretches do not mean the team has fallen out of contention.

Yes, yes you are right. I agree 100%. You are correct.

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TravC59, aka JacksJags. @TravC59 on Twitter
;
; "This is really good, you want a bite, Honey?"

Jorge Soler to debut for the Cubbies tonight, yet another piece to the future puzzle getting some time in before 2015.

 

...and he goes yard in his first at bat!  God I cannot wait until next season.

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...and he goes yard in his first at bat!  God I cannot wait until next season.

The Cubs are loaded with young talent. 

 

Any young pitchers to take note of for next year?

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The Cubs are loaded with young talent. 

 

Any young pitchers to take note of for next year?

 

Their farm system has/was loaded with young offensive talent.  Kris Bryant intrigues me the most of them all but understandably he won't be up until next spring (allowing them to push off his FA one more season) but I can't wait to see him at the next level.  As far as pitching the system is pretty bare compared to the bats.  I get the impression they plan on spending money this offseason (and maybe the next) to add pitching to the offense.  The Cubs pitching has been better than people think this year, in my opinion, but the roster has been so weak they don't score enough runs to pull off the win. The pitching staff will need several big additions to be a playoff level staff but the cupboard isn't completely bare there.  I think they could fill out the bottom of a rotation well enough but the top 1/2/3 probably aren't on the roster at this point.

 

I know plenty that have been hard on Epstein for the losing that has taken place but the farm system appears absolutely loaded with bats.  Time will tell if these prospects (I know they all will not) live up to their billing but there is some interesting baseball ahead for Cub's fans.  That's something I haven't been able to say with a straight face for YEARS.

 

I love the thought of being able to follow YOUNG talent in their transition with the Cubs.  We've already seen guys like Rizzo and Castro fair pretty well. Add in guys like Soler, Bryant,  and Baez and I'm trying to curb my enthusiasm.  On top of those, you have others like Addison Russell, Albert Almora, and Alcantara.

 

I could see a trade or two of some of these young prospects to try and get an arm next year.  

 

The current roster payroll is somewhere in the range of $73 million from what I find.  That's near the bottom of the league if I'm seeing it right.  The Cubs have plenty of money to spend but the plan looks to be to spend that on pitching.  There was no need for that yet at this point when not enough of the positional prospects were ready.  I fully expect the Cubs to be active this offseason.

 

The changes Theo and crew have made have been numerous and it reminds me a bit of Caldwell and the Jaguars.   Theo has shed large contracts and propped up the farm system with young promising players.  Guys like Alfonso Soriano and his massive contract are long gone.  Brighter days are ahead.  I expect the Cubs to be largely improved next season and serious contenders in 2016 if the plan continues to fall into place.

 

I hope either Max Scherzer or Jon Lester can end up a Cub this offseason.

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Excited to see what Drew Smyly can become with a full offseason with the Rays. Teach him a passable changeup and he becomes very dangerous.

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I dont think iglesias can make the play simmons made tonight. Thing of beauty.

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Their farm system has/was loaded with young offensive talent. Kris Bryant intrigues me the most of them all but understandably he won't be up until next spring (allowing them to push off his FA one more season) but I can't wait to see him at the next level. As far as pitching the system is pretty bare compared to the bats. I get the impression they plan on spending money this offseason (and maybe the next) to add pitching to the offense. The Cubs pitching has been better than people think this year, in my opinion, but the roster has been so weak they don't score enough runs to pull off the win. The pitching staff will need several big additions to be a playoff level staff but the cupboard isn't completely bare there. I think they could fill out the bottom of a rotation well enough but the top 1/2/3 probably aren't on the roster at this point.


I know plenty that have been hard on Epstein for the losing that has taken place but the farm system appears absolutely loaded with bats. Time will tell if these prospects (I know they all will not) live up to their billing but there is some interesting baseball ahead for Cub's fans. That's something I haven't been able to say with a straight face for YEARS.


I love the thought of being able to follow YOUNG talent in their transition with the Cubs. We've already seen guys like Rizzo and Castro fair pretty well. Add in guys like Soler, Bryant, and Baez and I'm trying to curb my enthusiasm. On top of those, you have others like Addison Russell, Albert Almora, and Alcantara.


I could see a trade or two of some of these young prospects to try and get an arm next year.


The current roster payroll is somewhere in the range of $73 million from what I find. That's near the bottom of the league if I'm seeing it right. The Cubs have plenty of money to spend but the plan looks to be to spend that on pitching. There was no need for that yet at this point when not enough of the positional prospects were ready. I fully expect the Cubs to be active this offseason.


The changes Theo and crew have made have been numerous and it reminds me a bit of Caldwell and the Jaguars. Theo has shed large contracts and propped up the farm system with young promising players. Guys like Alfonso Soriano and his massive contract are long gone. Brighter days are ahead. I expect the Cubs to be largely improved next season and serious contenders in 2016 if the plan continues to fall into place.


I hope either Max Scherzer or Jon Lester can end up a Cub this offseason.

Great post. I will be keeping an eye out for the Cubs. I have always had a soft spot for them.


I have been waiting for Arrietta to turn it up and I guess he has finally found it. I hope he keeps it up. Rizzo is one of my favorite players. Guy just flat out rakes.

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Maybe not.... But no SS can make some plays that Iglesias makes, either. Like fangraphs said... It's Simmons, Iglesias, and then everyone else.

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As if the Tigers weren't boning it enough already, I watched something I've never seen happen. Ellsbury led off the 3rd for the Yankees and the Yankees followed up with 8 more hits in a row. I've seen teams bat around before, but usually there is an out or walk somewhere in between. Not today. All 9 Yankees had a base hit before an out was recorded. To top it off, it was off one of the best pitchers in baseball.



Sigh.

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A's rotation over Tigers. Holds truer now then weeks ago.

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TravC59, aka JacksJags. @TravC59 on Twitter
;
; "This is really good, you want a bite, Honey?"

We'll see. Both staffs have been shaky since the trades.

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We'll see. Both staffs have been shaky since the trades.

We have seen. A's staff over Tigers right now.

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TravC59, aka JacksJags. @TravC59 on Twitter
;
; "This is really good, you want a bite, Honey?"

We have seen. A's staff over Tigers right now.

 

Pretty small sample size and both staffs (minus Lester) have struggled. I'll still take the Tigers staff in a 5 or 7 game series come October. Hopefully the Tigers can get there.

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